The Chicago Cubs look to continue their pitching domination of the Los Angeles Dodgers and finish a three-game home sweep on Wednesday night, with the Cubs opening as -153 money line betting favorites (over/under: 7) on WagerWeb.com.
Chicago has allowed only a run each in the first two games of this series to the offensively challenged Dodgers, and the Cubs trot out ace Carlos Zambrano tonight.
Zambrano (7-1, 2.47 ERA) is tied for second in the NL in wins and ranks third in ERA. Big Z is 2-2 with a 3.35 ERA career against L.A. in 10 games - six starts.
The Cubs have one of the majors' best home records at 21-8. They've won 10 of 12 games there since May 9, including back-to-back 3-1 victories over the Dodgers. But the Cubs haven't swept the Dodgers at Wrigley since May 4-6, 2001.
The Dodgers have dropped four of five games, scoring one run or fewer in each of those losses. They've stranded 20 runners on base in the first two games of this series. The Dodgers were one for five with runners in scoring position on Tuesday, making them six for 51 over their last five games.
They start Derek Lowe (2-5, 5.03), who hasn't won in more than a month and is 0-4 with a 7.29 ERA in his past six starts. The right-hander is 1-1 with a 3.72 ERA in six career starts against the Cubs.
Chicago outfielder and NL Rookie of the Year candidate Kosuke Fukudome broke out of an 0-for-10 slump (and only a .256 average in May) in Tuesday's win with two hits and a walk. Fellow outfielder Jim Edmonds continues to struggle as a Cub, going 0-for-4 Tuesday; he is hitting .125 (3-for-24) as a Cub.Manager Lou Piniella said there's no "time limit" for Edmonds to produce before the Cubs would decide to end the experiment but stressed it was time to get going.
L.A. might not have second baseman Jeff Kent again tonight. Kent sat out Tuesday because of back spasms. Torre said that Kent woke up with tightness in his back and felt it return when he took batting practice. Kent's availability tonight is uncertain, but if it's cold again, look for him to sit out.
One player the Dodgers will be without for a while is outfielder Andruw Jones, who has been awful to this point in his L.A. career. Jones underwent surgery to repair a slight tear in his right cartilage Tuesday, and the Dodgers reported that all went well. Nothing unexpected was found during the procedure, and Jones' estimated recovery remains at four to six weeks. He will begin therapy immediately.
Jones was hitting only .167 with two homers and seven RBIs before going on the DL.
Betting trends: Dodgers are 2-8 in their last 10 games as a road underdog of +110 to +150. . Dodgers are 3-12 in Lowe's last 15 starts as an underdog. . Cubs are 6-1 in their last 7 games as a favorite of -151 to -200. . Cubs are 10-1 in Zambrano's last 11 starts as a favorite of -151 to -200. . Under is 7-0 in Dodgers' last 7 overall. . Under is 9-2 in Zambrano's last 11 starts with 4 days of rest. . Under is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.
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